Lydia Onimo is taking 11 Warren Easton High School students on an 11-day tour of France and Spain as part of a program she created, &#8220;Enlighten...
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French teacher at New Orleans' Warren Easton High School wants to take students abroad

O ye of little faith in public education take heed: A high school French teacher is on a mission to change her students’ lives. And we can help her do it.

In June, Lydia Onimo is taking 11 Warren Easton High School students on an 11-day tour of France and Spain as part of a program she created, “Enlighten Through Education.”

The premise should enlighten politicians who refuse to see the light our teachers beam into classrooms every day.

“We all know how young people are so focused on New Orleans and what’s happening here,” Onimo said. “It’s important to expose them to a different culture and a different language — to remove them from this environment and give them access to a broader world. Traveling to France and Spain will give them a greater perspective of not only the world but also themselves. It will change their lives.”

To make the trip a reality, the students must raise $30,000 — in two months.

Onimo and colleagues Dameatrice Dunbar, who teaches English, and parent liaison Amanda Winfield have helped students raise $16,000. For weeks, they’ve run a concession stand at games and concerts at the New Orleans Arena and Mercedes-Benz Superdome. And they’re doing what students have done since I was in high school: selling candy and baked goods.

For that final, critical push, Onimo has a keen strategy.

“We need 1,000 donors donating just $30 each,” she explained.

The incentive is a new iPad that Apple donated. For $30, a donor could walk away with one of the hottest items on the planet, while helping send 11 Warren Easton students and their three mentors on a life-changing adventure.

Onimo said supporters can go to www.firstgiving.com/wesummerabroad and www.donorschoose.org/we-teach/635195. She can be reached at lonimo@gmail.com or 504.655.1531.

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Get your dancing shoes on. I was so excited about the Bayou Boogaloo benefit at Chickie Wah-Wah that I incorrectly deciphered my chicken scratch and sent you all a week early.

Go out tonight, 6-10, hang out with host Johnny Dilks and get down with Camile Baudoin and the Living Rumors. The smoke-free club is at 2828 Canal St. There will be an auction and other ways for you to support the Boogaloo.

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The Fair Grounds Race Course & Slots and Susan G. Komen Foundation are teaming up for a “Pink Out” day at the races Saturday. Jim Mulvihill with the Churchill Downs-owned Fair Grounds said for every admission fee paid, $1 will be donated to the Komen Foundation. There will be a silent auction with some interesting items — including a pair of tickets to the Kentucky Derby — and daylong special events, including a “Survivors Parade.”

“Anyone who is a breast cancer survivor is welcome to march in the parade,” Mulvihill said. “They will be at the trackside tent at 3:30 p.m. We will hand them each a carnation and we will march through the paddock area. It should be about a 10-15-minute parade.”

Most race days begin with the first post at 12:10 p.m. Regular admission is $5 and clubhouse admission is $10. For complete details, contact Jim at james.mulvihill@fgno.com or 504.948.1233, or Komen’s New Orleans affiliate director Lisa Plunkett at 504.455.7310. You can also go to www.FairGroundsRaceCourse.com.

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Be sure to put two major Bayou St. John events on your Saturday must-do list.

The Preservation Resource Center shotgun house tour is 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

Day-of tickets are $25; advance tickets are $16 for PRC and Louisiana Landmark Society members; $20 for nonmembers; and $10 each for groups of 10 or more. To buy advance tickets or get more information, call 504.581.7032.

“Boilin’ for the Bridges” fundraiser for the Re-Bridge project is 3-6 p.m. Saturday. It takes place at 2867 Maurepas St. Tickets are $30 for all-you-can-eat-and-drink, including boiled seafood, and only $5 for kids 10 and younger.

All proceeds will go toward helping the Re-Bridge project with the Faubourg St. John Neighborhood Association restore the historic Magnolia and Dumaine Street bridges that span Bayou St. John. Go to www.rebridge.org for complete details.

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Melinda Shelton writes about Mid-City, Faubourg St. John and the Fair Grounds and DeSaix neighborhoods. She can be reached at melindalshelton@gmail.com or 504.942.1354.